Rights groups call for annulment of death sentences for Pakshan Azizi and Warisha Moradi

The Kurdistan Human Rights Network, together with 17 Iranian and international human rights organizations, called for the immediate abolition of the death penalty for political prisoners.

Protests to the death sentences imposed by the Iranian state on political prisoners continue. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network, together with 17 Iranian and international human rights organizations, issued a joint statement regarding the death sentences imposed on Pakshan Azizi and Warisha Moradi.

The statement said: "In the name of life, in the name of humanity, in the name of beauty. These words are the beginning of the letter by Warisha Moradi, a Kurdish political prisoner in Evin jail. These words remind us of the heroic women of Iran and Kurdistan who resisted the oppressive Iranian system. These words are their voice and call."

The statement added: "This time, the oppression against women and the Kurdish people has settled right at the heart of the oppressive system. In this new period, brave women such as Moradi and Azizi have been sentenced to death on false charges. Iran will never be able to resolve and balance the crises in its foreign policy by victimizing society at the center of the struggle in Kurdistan and Iran."

The statement underlined that the right to a fair trial is constantly violated when it comes to political prisoners, and added: "These women were not only deprived of their right to a lawyer, but were also subjected to severe pressure and inhuman torture in order to force them to confess. As human rights organizations, we express our stance against this inhumane course of events and state that we are determined to fight for justice for these two women. We demand the immediate abolition of the death sentences of Warisha Moradi, Pakshan Azizi and all political prisoners. With their will and courage, these women have initiated a new era in the struggle for freedom and equality, and these executions will have serious consequences for the Islamic Republic regime."

The signatories of the statement are as follows:

Kurdistan Human Rights Association
International Education Development
Center for Human Rights Defenders
American Retirement Council
Kurdistan Human Rights Network
Ehwaz Human Rights Organization
Support Against Execution
Baloch Activists Campaign
Resanak
Abdurrahman Broomand Iran Human Rights Center
Iran Human Rights for All
Siam Purzend Center
Balochistan Human Rights Group
Human Rights in Iran
Mehrangiz Kar
Organization of the Azerbaijani People for Human Rights in Iran
Unity Organization of Iran
Atlas of Prisons in Iran.